PNP, AFP security preparations for farmers’ march all set

By Ronron
January 21, 2008

The police and military are set for the security in Metro Manila as farmers’ and their allies march today from Quezon City to the historic Mendiola site in Manila City to commemorate the 21st anniversary of the so-called Mendiola Massacre.

A day after the Philippine National Police (PNP) went on full alert in Metro Manila and nearby regions, the Armed Forces National Capital Region Command (NCRCOM) raised yesterday its alert in Metro Manila to full status also to allow their troops to be ready for possible augmentation.

National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Director Geary Barias said that of the 10,000 police forces to be placed on stand-by for today’s activities, 2,000 will actually be deployed to Mendiola area, while another thousand will be securing Quezon City.

The rest of the forces will just be awaiting orders for their possible deployment to the field when necessary or will perform anti-criminality operations in the capital.

“We have on the ground what we call as the Metro Manila Shield. These are contingency measures to ensure that Metro Manila will be safe, peaceful and orderly, that no untoward incident will happen even as we allow the lawful conduct of rallies and demonstration,” PNP chief Gen. Avelino Razon, Jr. said in a news conference yesterday morning at Camp Crame, Quezon.

NCRCOM chief Maj. Gen. Fernando Mesa said in a separate interview that military troops from his unit will be placed on stand-by to augment police forces when called for by the situation.

He disclosed that more than a hundred military personnel have already been deployed on Sunday evening all over the metropolis to augment policemen manning 10 checkpoints.

It can be recalled that farmers from southern Tagalog have started coming in to Metro Manila over the weekend for today’s mass gathering in Mendiola.

The Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), which is spearheading the march, said it expects a total of 5,000 farmers who will participate in the gathering at Mendiola. The march will come from the Department of Agrarian Reform office at the Elliptical Road in Quezon City.

The KMP said that elsewhere in the country, some other 15,000 farmers will also hold protest actions simultaneously with the activities in the capital.

Barias said that even if today’s protest action is only set to begin at 9am, the 3,000 policemen for Mendiola and Quezon City will be sent to their assigned posts as early as 5am.

The rally is to call for justice over the death of 13 farmers who gathered at Mendiola in 1987, and to bring out the agrarian issues.

Authorities have warned that members of the New People’s Army (NPA) or from the group of military rebels may take advantage of the mass gathering to achieve their objective of unseating President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

At the start of the year, the government had already disclosed reports of alleged destabilization attempts against the Arroyo administration.

Barias and Razon, nevertheless, expressed hope that the activities today will end at 6pm without any untoward incident.

This even as the police and the rally organizers have yet to resolve the issue on the venue of the protest action. The rally participants said they will insist to hold their activity at Mendiola, but the police and the city government of Manila said Mendiola is open for mass actions only during Saturdays, Sundays and holidays.

“This is non-negotiable… We will suggest to the organizers to hold it instead at Liwasang Bonifacio or in other freedom parks in Manila City,” Manila Police District Director Chief Supt. Roberto Rosales said yesterday.

“We are appealing to them not to push towards Mendiola because we will stand on their way,” he added.

Rosales cited a local city policy in prohibiting the farmers from holding their rally at Mendiola.

But KMP chairman Rafael Mariano said the Philippine Constitution would support their insistence that they could hold their mass action at Mendiola, particularly under the guaranteed rights of every citizen to peaceably assemble and to freedom of expression.

Razon, however, countered that, saying that every right has a limit if the public welfare, or of the majority, at least, is at stake.

“Their right to hold demonstrate, to hold rally is not absolute. When it infringes on the right of the general public to go about their daily normal lives, then we will not allow the conduct of that demonstration. If, for example, they block EDSA and cause monstrous traffic jam, we will not allow that because the general public will be affected,” Razon said.

He warned that the police will not hesitate to arrest any one who will violate the law.

Meanwhile, Mesa said they have received reports that some groups really intend to cause a huge turnout of attendees in today’s activities by paying organizers who could invite many demonstrators.

He side the information they received showed that the organizers will be given P500 for every rally participant that they could draw in from the urban poor communities in Metro Manila.

Mesa was not immediately aware, however, who is providing the funds./DMS